This invention is directed to an object actuator and feed apparatus which concurrently loads an object in a position to be acted on by the actuator as the actuator is moved from a rest position to an activated position. Upon allowing the actuator to travel again to the rest position the object is propelled by the actuator and the feed mechanism is repositioned to once again refeed the object to the actuator when the actuator is again moved from the rest position to its actuated position.
Pinball games almost universally utilize spherical metal objects as the object which is manipulated across the playing surface. The typical pinball machine will use a plunger of one sort or another to propell the sphere initially across the playing surface. Depending upon the sophistication of the pinball game, the metal sphere is placed in a position to be acted upon by the plunger by a variety of different mechanisms.
In expensive highly sophisticated pinball games the feed mechanism is normally controlled by a solenoid which is activated either by the player using a button or by a trip switch which senses when the previous sphere is no longer in play, but has, in fact, been lodged or deposited in a scoring position or has been deposited in "an out of play" receptacle.
In inexpensive pinball games, including toy pinball games, the sophisticated mechanisms of the expensive pinball games cannot be used for obvious reasons. Normally the inexpensive or toy pinball games rely on a gravity feed mechanism and a plurality of metal spheres. At the start of play the metal spheres are lined up in a chute or other similar structure located next to the plunger. As one ball is propelled by the plunger the next ball descends down the chute in line with the plunger. Normally the ball next to the plunger is used to inhibit a second ball from exiting out of the chute. As is obvious from this description this type of gravity feed must be used with a plurality of spheres.
Since only one sphere is normally in play at a time it is considered disadvantageous to require more than one sphere in the pinball game for a number of reasons. included in these reasons are the economics of providing more than one sphere and the possibility of two spheres becoming jammed together either temporarily or permanently in the chute or other narrow channels within the game.
In a pinball game in which only a single sphere is used, in order to make the game more challenging and establish a base line for judging one players skill against the other, it is important to know how many times the single sphere is actually propelled by the plunger, i.e. the number of shots the player took. Some toy pinball games are equipped with a counting system for noting the number of shots taken, however, these generally are independent and separate from the plunger itself and require the players to specifically manipulate a separate mechanism and thus are susceptible to being forgotten. Whether or not a shot was actually recorded can therefore lead to controversy especially when small children are using the game.